By Dean Weingarten
Arizona – -(Ammoland.com)- As the ability for the few students with concealed carry permits to carry on Texas public campuses approaches, retired leftist economics professor Daniel S. Hamermesh, has decided to break a contract to teach a class this coming semester. From insidehighered.com:
“As much as I have loved the experience of teaching and introducing these students to economics at the university, I have decided not to continue,” Daniel S. Hamermesh, the Sue Killam Professor Emeritus, wrote in a letter to university administrators this week. “With a huge group of students my perception is that the risk that a disgruntled student might bring a gun into the classroom and start shooting at me has been substantially enhanced by the concealed-carry law.”
Hamermesh has published numerous articles. He is a labor economist, who claims that the distinction between “makers” and “takers” is a purely political decision. This article at econlib.org fisks some of his leftists bias.
If the quality of his economics is similar to the quality of his thinking about the dangers of concealed carry on campus, then the university is well off without him. Placing professors such as this in positions of influence on our campuses shows how thoroughly the left has “marched through the institutions”.
Hamermesh shows absolute ignorance about how the real world works. The policy to allow concealed carry on campus only applies to students 21 or older who have gone through the process of obtaining a concealed carry permit.
People who have gone to the trouble of obtaining a concealed carry permit have empirically demonstrated, in Texas, that they are some of the most law abiding people in Texas. They are more law abiding than police officers.
Does Professor Hamermesh actually think that a student who is willing to shoot at him, will be deterred by a rule that makes it illegal to carry a gun onto campus? Does he really think that people who have gone to the trouble to obtain a concealed carry permit represent more of a threat than they provide a deterrence to unjustified violence, contrary to all the evidence gathered over the last 30 years?
Hamermesh did note a potential positive aspect of the new law:
Hamermesh said while the university might have done more to advocate against the legislation, he in no way blamed it for the new law.
“This is Texas,” he said. “These [legislators] will do anything they can to cater to the right-wingers.”
Asked if he thought other faculty members might follow suit and leave the state, Hamermesh guessed they wouldn’t. But he said recruiting top faculty members might be harder with the specter of guns in their classrooms.
If emotional and irrational professors stay away from Texas schools as a result of the law, Texas will have benefited.
Professor Hamermesh spent all of his adult life sheltered in the arms of various state supported institutions of higher education. Perhaps his phobia does not influence his teaching of economics, but I suspect that it does.
Hoplophobia is often linked to the belief that the state is benevolent and wise, better at making decisions for individuals than they are themselves. That seems to apply to his economic philosophy.
It is easy to see how a person who has spent their entire life in academia could maintain such a delusion. It worked for them.
c2014 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included. Link to Gun Watch
About Dean Weingarten;
Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of constitutional carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and recently retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.
If we don’t see or hear from Professor Hamermesh again, SO WHAT!
Mr Weingarten, could this be more of a case of Eleurothorphobia. Then a case of hopolophobia.
Clark Kent, I can totally agree with you. Please don’t let the door hit your ass on the way out professor. Reminds me of a saying we have here, educated beyond his intelligence.
What strikes me is the stupid things he says.First people with carry permits ( which should not be necessary)-are the safest people to have. They may just save your life one day
Secondly, what makes him think they are not already carrying. What makes him think that a sign will stop any bad guy from coming with a gun
Stupid beyond stupid
We ball know that the true leftist is incapable of true rational thought. If they were capable of it , communism would not exist. Neither would disproven European socialism. Thatcher was absolutely correct.
As I had a 35 year career teaching in public education, I feel I have a right to an opinion on this. Looking at his picture, my take is that he doesn’t want to admit he is too old to cut it anymore, and is looking for a way to gracefully bow out. He salves his conscience with overtures that can be hidden behind while reflecting his basic beliefs. That way his friends can say, “Look what guns have done to this poor man.” Truth be told,.. this old man can’t cut it and is taking the cowards way out.
It’s always nice to see an ignorant, ill-informed, American socialist do the right thing. I am sure that future students will benefit from his not teaching at that school any more.
“…my perception is that the risk that a disgruntled student might bring a gun into the classroom and start shooting at me has been substantially enhanced by the concealed-carry law.” – Prof. Hamermesh What an ego! Not to mention, has he no regard for the students? Or will the good, kindly old prof be the only person a ‘disgruntled’ student will be shooting at? It begs the question, what is he teaching, that in his opinion, would evoke the ire of a student enough to shoot at him? UT is better off without this leftist…people like him is what’s wrong… Read more »
If it were true that guns in a classroom were as dangerous as professor Hamermesh makes them out to be, then all or at least many of the instructors who teach classes pertainitng to the licensing of concealed carry permits would be dead. It seams to me that this professor should take a course in logic, or stick to economics.
It would seem that this educated dummy is depending on “the law” forbidding campus carry to make him feel safe, which of course had no effect on the criminal element. Changing the law allowing campus carry scares the “educator” even though it is still against the law to murder or assault, with or without a gun. Maybe, just maybe, changing laws and making up new ones have no affect on the criminals and handicap the law abiding. Maybe.
He was already retired and only teaching a single class. He also was ending that commitment to move out of the country. This was just bluster.
He’s a Godless false-Jew consciously gaslighting the Goyim, on behalf of our FedScamming, Hitler-financing, JFK-assassinating, 9/11-committing, mass shootings hoax- and psyop-staging satanic Organized Crime, Rothschild/Rockefeller ruling false-elite, as he was taught to do from birth, and he knows the People are starting to get wise to his Synagogue of Satan here in Isaiah’s actual prophesied “Israel,” he and his mishpochas seek to enslave.
He is fully aware his interests are not those of his students before God…hence the fear of being shot.
Educated idiot, plain and simple. Don’t let the screen door hit you in the azz on your way out…..
Other sources have discovered that the professor already has a new job at a university in Australia and was only teaching one class a year at UT.